Overlapping gene

An overlapping gene is a gene whose expressible nucleotide sequence partially overlaps with the expressible nucleotide sequence of another gene. In this way, a nucleotide sequence may make a contribution to the function of one or more gene products. Overprinting refers to a type of overlap in which all or part of the sequence of one gene is read in an alternate reading frame from another gene at the same locus. Overprinting has been hypothesized as a mechanism for de novo emergence of new genes from existing sequences, either older genes or previously non-coding regions of the genome. Overprinted genes are particularly common features of the genomic organization of viruses, likely to greatly increase the number of potential expressible genes from a small set of viral genetic information. An overlapping gene is a gene whose expressible nucleotide sequence partially overlaps with the expressible nucleotide sequence of another gene. In this way, a nucleotide sequence may make a contribution to the function of one or more gene products. Overprinting refers to a type of overlap in which all or part of the sequence of one gene is read in an alternate reading frame from another gene at the same locus. Overprinting has been hypothesized as a mechanism for de novo emergence of new genes from existing sequences, either older genes or previously non-coding regions of the genome. Overprinted genes are particularly common features of the genomic organization of viruses, likely to greatly increase the number of potential expressible genes from a small set of viral genetic information. Genes may overlap in a variety of ways and can be classified by their positions relative to each other. Overlapping genes can also be classified by phases, which describe their relative reading frames: Overlapping genes are particularly common in rapidly evolving genomes, such as those of viruses, bacteria, and mitochondria. They may originate in three ways: The use of the same nucleotide sequence to encode multiple genes may provide evolutionary advantage due to reduction in genome size and due to the opportunity for transcriptional and translational co-regulation of the overlapping genes. Gene overlaps introduce novel evolutionary constraints on the sequences of the overlap regions. In 1977, Pierre-Paul Grassé proposed that one of the genes in the pair could have originated de novo by mutations to introduce novel ORFs in alternate reading frames; he described the mechanism as overprinting.:231 It was later substantiated by Susumu Ohno, who identified a candidate gene that may have arisen by this mechanism. Some de novo genes originating in this way may not remain overlapping, but subfunctionalize following gene duplication, contributing to the prevalence of orphan genes. Which member of an overlapping gene pair is younger can be identified bioinformatically either by a more restricted phylogenetic distribution, or by less optimized codon usage. Younger members of the pair tend to have higher intrinsic structural disorder than older members, but the older members are also more disordered than other proteins, presumably as a way of alleviating the increased evolutionary constraints posed by overlap. Overlaps are more likely to originate in proteins that already have high disorder. Overlapping genes occur in all domains of life, though with varying frequencies. They are especially common in viral genomes. The existence of overlapping genes was first identified in viruses; the first DNA genome ever sequenced, of the bacteriophage ΦX174, contained several examples. Overlapping genes are particularly common in viral genomes. Some studies attribute this observation to selective pressure toward small genome sizes mediated by the physical constraints of packaging the genome in a viral capsid, particularly one of icosahedral geometry. However, other studies dispute this conclusion and argue that the distribution of overlaps in viral genomes is more likely to reflect overprinting as the evolutionary origin of overlapping viral genes. Overprinting is a common source of de novo genes in viruses. Studies of overprinted viral genes suggest that their protein products tend to be accessory proteins which are not essential to viral proliferation, but contribute to pathogenicity. Overprinted proteins often have unusual amino acid distributions and high levels of intrinsic disorder. In some cases overprinted proteins do have well-defined, but novel, three-dimensional structures; one example is the RNA silencing suppressor p19 found in Tombusviruses, which has both a novel protein fold and a novel binding mode in recognizing siRNAs.